Trump, France's Macron Discuss Iran, Mideast, Trade

FILE - U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with French President Emmanuel Macron during a summit of NATO heads of state and government at NATO headquarters in Brussels, July 11, 2018.

Share

Trump, France's Macron Discuss Iran, Mideast, Trade

share

U.S. President Donald Trump spoke Friday with French President Emmanuel Macron about trade, Iran and the Middle East, the White House said.

Trump, who is vacationing at his New Jersey golf club, said on Twitter that he had discussed "various subjects" with Macron in a "very good" phone call.

The two leaders discussed "a broad range of trade and security issues, including the situation in Iran and the broader Middle East," the White House said in a statement.

The Elysee Palace said in a brief statement the two leaders discussed Syria, Iran and the Israel-Palestinian conflict, but did not mention trade.

Trump and Macron last met at a NATO summit in Brussels in July, where the U.S. president chastised members of the alliance that have not met its military spending targets.

At the summit, Macron said France would meet the NATO goal of spending 2.0 percent of gross domestic product on defense by 2024. Trump caused an
uproar when he pressed alliance members to reach the target by January.

On trade, the United States and the European Union are embroiled in a spat after Trump imposed tariffs on imports of aluminum and steel from France and other countries. The EU responded with retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. goods.

Trump had also threatened to impose tariffs on EU auto imports but reached an agreement to hold off on taking action after meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker at the White House last month.

Macron and Trump are at odds over the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions on Tehran. Trump tweeted this week that companies doing business in Iran would be barred from doing business in the United States.

Among large European companies that have suspended plans to invest in Iran after the U.S. action are France's oil major Total and its big carmakers PSA and Renault.

In the Middle East, France opposed Trump's decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv.